Artist · 36 prints
Pahari school Prints
About the Pahari School
Pahari painting, also called Hill painting, is the miniature painting and book illustration of the small independent states of the Himalayan foothills in northern India. The earliest known hill paintings, in the bold Basohli manner, date from about 1690. A transitional style followed from about 1740, and by 1770 the gentler Kangra style was fully formed, reaching its peak under Raja Sansar Chand (reigned 1775–1823). In the mid-18th century, families of artists trained in the late Mughal style are said to have left Delhi for the hills.
The states lay so close together that much Pahari work is hard to assign to a single court, which is why many pages are catalogued simply as Pahari. The favourite theme is the life and loves of Krishna, from the Bhagavata Purana and the Gita Govinda, along with Hindu myths, heroines in love, ragamala series and portraits of hill rulers and their families. Painting declined after 1800 but continued through the 19th century.
Pahari school prints: reproductions of miniature paintings from the hill kingdoms of the Himalayan foothills, made between the late 17th and early 19th centuries. The collection includes Shangri Ramayana: Sita Asks Rama to Fetch the Golden Deer (1700), Celebrations of Krishna's Birth, from a Bhagavata Purana (1725), Krishna Celebrates Holi (1770), Royal Lovers Watching Rain Clouds: The Month of Bhadon (1790) and Kali on Shiva (1810).
This selection covers the full range of hill painting: Krishna's childhood and loves, the goddesses Kali and Durga in battle, Rama and Sita, ragamala pages and heroines waiting for their lovers. It also includes portraits of hill rulers such as Raja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir, and seasonal and zodiac pages such as Sagittarius.
The softer palettes suit bedrooms and reading rooms, while the battle and court scenes work in studies, dining rooms and hallways. All prints are museum-quality reproductions, available unframed or framed with low-glare acrylic glazing, with free shipping and import duties covered.
